Server Migration Center:Batch migration of servers

Step 1: Create a workgroup

50 workgroups can be created in each Alibaba Cloud account.

1. Log on to the Server Migration Center (SMC) console.

   Important

   If you migrate data between ECS instances that belong to different Alibaba Cloud accounts (migrate ECS instances of source account A to destination account B), use Alibaba Cloud account B to log on to the SMC console.

2. On the Workgroup Migration page, click createWorkgroup.

3. In the pop-up createWorkgroup dialog box, configure parameters based on the following table.

   Parameter	Description
   workgroupName	Optional. Enter the workgroup name. The name must be 2 to 64 characters in length. It must start with a letter and cannot start with http:// or https://. It can contain digits, colons (:), periods (.), underscores (_), and hyphens (-).
   workgroupDescription	Optional. Enter the workgroup description.
   Select Migration Source	Optional. If you have imported migration sources: You can select migration sources from the drop-down list. If you have not imported migration sources: You can follow Step 2: Import and associate a source after you create a workgroup. Note A workgroup can associate up to 50 migration sources. A migration source can only be associated with one workgroup.
   Tag	Optional. Enter tag keys and tag values, or select existing tag keys and tag values to facilitate workgroup management. Note Each workgroup can bind up to 20 tags.

4. Click Create.

   If you no longer need the workgroup later, you need to disassociate the migration sources in the workgroup, select > Delete Workgroup in the Actions column of the corresponding workgroup, and delete the workgroup as prompted.

Step 2: Import and associate a source

Migration sources can be servers of a variety of types, such as servers in data centers, VMs, and hosts on third-party cloud platforms.

1. In the Create a Workgroup dialog box that appears, click Import Migration Source.

   Note

   If you have associated all migration sources when creating a workgroup, click Close and continue to Step 3: Start migration.

2. On the Import Migration Source page, follow the prompts to import and associate the migration source.

   (Recommend) Use the CLI

   Important

   • The source server must have public network access. If the source server has firewall restrictions, see What are the endpoints of SMC? to obtain the SMC domain names and ports, and add them to the firewall whitelist.

   • If your source server cannot access the public network or you want to improve migration efficiency by transferring data over a private network, see the private network migration solution.

   1. Configure the parameters as prompted and copy the activation code command.

      The following table describes the parameters.

      Parameter	Description
      Workgroup	By default, the created workgroup is selected.
      Migration Source Type	Physical Server/VM/Cloud servers of other cloud platforms
      Import Method	Select Use CLI to Import Server.
      Migration Source Quota	The number of migration sources that can be activated by the activation code. The value ranges from 1 to 1000. The default value is 200.
      Validity Period	The validity period of the activation code. The value ranges from 1 to 90 days. The default value is 90 days.
      Activation Code	After generating the activation code, copy the command. Perform the following steps: Click Generate. Based on the source server's operating system, click the Linux Shell or Windows Powershell tab. Click Copy to copy the activation code command.

   2. Log on to the source server, and then paste and run the copied command with administrator privileges to import the migration source.

      Linux source server

      1. Log on to the Linux source server.

      2. Paste and run the copied command with administrator privileges to import the migration source.

         

         After you run the command, a message similar to Import Source Server [s-bp18x8751kgz2oyh****] Successfully! appears, which indicates that the migration source was imported successfully.

      Windows source server

      1. Log on to the Windows source server.

      2. Open Windows PowerShell with administrator privileges.

      3. Paste and run the copied command to import the migration source.

         

         After you run the command, a message similar to Import Source Server [s-bp19rlidl3mwuptc****] Successfully! appears, which indicates that the migration source was imported successfully.

         If the command fails to run, see What do I do if the command fails to run when I import a Windows migration source from the command line?.

   Use the SMC client

   1. Configure the parameters as prompted and copy the activation code command.

      The following table describes the parameters.

      Parameter	Description
      Workgroup	By default, the created workgroup is selected.
      Migration Source Type	Select the type of source server as needed: Physical Server or VM ECS Third-party Cloud Sever
      Import Method	Select Use Client to Import Server.

   2. Import the migration source.

      Important

      Do not close the SMC client during the migration. Otherwise, the migration source will lose its connection to the SMC console and the migration will fail.

      Import a migration source from a Windows source server

      1. Use a remote connection tool that supports file transfer, such as WinSCP, to upload the SMC client to the Windows source server.

      2. On the Windows source server, use the system's built-in or a third-party decompression tool to unzip the SMC client package.

      3. In the SMC client folder that matches the system version of your source server, run the SMC client.

         When prompted for administrator privileges, click OK.

         • GUI version: Double-click the go2aliyun_gui.exe application to run it.

         • Command-line version: Double-click the go2aliyun_client.exe application to run it.

      4. Obtain an activation code or an AccessKey pair.

         • (Recommended) Obtain an activation code. In the SMC console, go to the Description section, click Generate, and copy the activation code.

         • Obtain an AccessKey pair: An AccessKey pair for an Alibaba Cloud account includes an AccessKey ID and an AccessKey secret. If you have not created an AccessKey pair, you must create one. For more information, see Create an AccessKey pair.

      5. Enter the activation code or AccessKey pair as prompted.

         • In the GUI, enter the activation code or AccessKey pair into the Token Id/AK and Token Code/SK text boxes and click Start. For more information, see the SMC client user guide.

         • Command-line version: Enter the values for access_access_token_id and access_token_code, and press the Enter key.

         When a message similar to Import Source Server [s-bp18x8751kgz2oyh****] Successfully! appears, it indicates that the migration source was imported successfully.

      Import a migration source from a Linux source server

      1. Use a remote connection tool that supports file transfer, such as WinSCP, to upload the SMC client to the Linux source server.

      2. Remotely connect to the Linux source server and unzip the SMC client package.

         This example uses the Linux 64-bit General-purpose Edition. If you use a different version of the SMC client, replace the package name in the command with the actual downloaded file name.

         tar -zxvf go2aliyun_client.tar.gz

         Note

         The Linux 64-bit ARM Edition supports the g6r general-purpose and c6r compute-optimized instance families. For more information about instance families, see Enterprise-level Arm-based compute instance families.

      3. (Optional) As needed, filter and exclude files or directories that do not need to be migrated.

         Important

         If you enable block replication for migration, you cannot exclude files or directories from migration.

      4. Obtain an activation code or an AccessKey pair.

         • (Recommended) In the Description section of the SMC console, click Generateand copy the activation code.

         • Obtain an AccessKey pair: An AccessKey pair for an Alibaba Cloud account includes an AccessKey ID and an AccessKey secret. If you have not created an AccessKey pair, you must create one. For more information, see Create an AccessKey pair.

      5. In the SMC client folder, run the following commands to start the SMC client.

         cd go2aliyun_client_linux_x86_64
         sudo chmod +x go2aliyun_client
         sudo ./go2aliyun_client

      6. Enter the activation code or AccessKey pair as prompted. This example uses an activation code:

         After you enter the activation code or AccessKey pair, the following prompts may appear:

         • If the source system does not have a snapshot driver installed, the SMC client prompts you, as shown in the following figure. You can choose whether to install the snapshot driver based on your needs.

           • If you enable block replication when you create the migration task, enter yes to automatically install the snapshot driver.

           • If you do not enable block replication when you create the migration task, enter no.

           Important

           If the snapshot driver fails to install, do not enable block replication when you create the migration task. Otherwise, the migration will fail.

           

         • Most mainstream source systems have rsync installed by default. If it is not installed, the SMC client prompts you. Enter yes to automatically install rsync, as shown in the following figure.

         • If SELinux is enabled on the source system, the SMC client prompts you to disable it. Enter yes to automatically disable SELinux, as shown in the following figure.

         When a message similar to Import Source Server [s-bp11npxndknsycqj****] Successfully! appears, it indicates that the migration source was imported successfully.

         Note

         If importing the migration source fails, you can troubleshoot the issue based on the displayed message, and then run the following commands in sequence to exit the background program and re-import the migration source. For more information about common issues and solutions, see SMC FAQ and Troubleshooting.

         sudo ./go2aliyun_client --abort
         sudo ./go2aliyun_client

   3. Associate the source.

      1. Log on to the Server Migration Center (SMC) console.

      2. In the actions column of the destination workspace, click Associate Migration Source.

      3. In the Associate Migration Source dialog box that appears, select a migration source and click OK.

3. Check the status of the migration source.

   1. Log on to the Server Migration Center (SMC) console.

   2. Click the workgroup ID to go to the workgroup details page.

   3. In the Migration Source section, view the status of the migration source in the Real-Time Migration Status column.

      • A status of Migration SourceOnline indicates a successful import.

      • If the status is not Source Online, the import failed. Troubleshoot the issue using the following methods and then re-import the source.

        • Troubleshoot the issue based on the error message in the console or by checking the SMC client log file. The default installation directories for the SMC client are:

          • Windows source server: C:\smc.

          • Linux source server: /smc.

        • For common issues and solutions, see SMC FAQ and Troubleshooting.

Step 3: Start migration

1. Log on to the Server Migration Center (SMC) console.

2. In the Actions column of the workgroup, click Start Migration.

3. In the Start Migration dialog box, confirm that the servers to be migrated are correct, and click Next.

   If servers still exist in the Inoperable Migration Sources tab, you can click the icon to view the reasons why they cannot be migrated.

4. Configure the migration parameters as needed, and click Create.

   If you have preset the migration task parameters in the migration template, the template parameters will be automatically filled in when the migration task is created to improve migration efficiency. For more information, see Set a migration template.

   Note

   If migration tasks already exist for some migration sources, no additional migration tasks will be created for these sources.

5. In the message that appears, read the migration notes and click Got It.

6. In the pop-up Migration Settings dialog box, click View Now.

7. On the Workgroup Migration page, view the migration status.

   1. When the Migration Status changes from Not Started to In Progress, it indicates that the servers have started migrating.

      You can click the workgroup ID to view the real-time migration status of each server. If you have enabled migration drills, SMC will first perform migration drills, and then perform migration operations after the drill is passed.

      • When the Real-time Migration Status is Drill Passed, it indicates that the migration drill is successful, and the system will automatically start the migration.

      • When the Real-time Migration Status is Drill Exception, it indicates that the migration drill fails. You need to view the drill report and fix the Critical drill items, and then retry the migration drill. For more information, see Configure a migration test.

      

   2. When the Real-time Migration Status is Synchronizing, it indicates that the server data is being migrated.

      The time required for data transmission varies based on factors such as the size of the migration source data and the network bandwidth. Wait until the migration job is complete. At this time, you can perform the following steps based on your needs:

      • Modify migration settings: In the Actions column, click Modify Migration Job to modify the task name, task description, transmission speed limit, compression rate, and Checksum verification parameters.

      • Pause the migration operation: In the Actions column, click Pause Migration Job to pause migration.

      When the migration job is in the Synchronizing state, the Speed and Time Remaining for Synchronization parameters are displayed in the Real-time Migration Status column:

      • Speed: the amount of data that is migrated per second, which indicates the transfer speed of uncompressed data. If you set the Compression Ratio parameter to a value greater than 0, the actual network transfer speed, which is the transfer speed of compressed data, is lower than the displayed speed.

      • Time Remaining for Synchronization: the remaining synchronization time calculated based on the current speed by using the following formula: Time remaining for synchronization = (Total data size - Transferred data size)/Speed.

      

   3. When the Real-time Migration Status is Waiting, it indicates that the first full migration of the server has been completed.

      The first migration will involve a full migration of data from the source server system and generate a full ECS custom image.

      

Step 4: Incremental migration

After the first migration is complete, the migration status is Waiting. SMC will wait for the next frequency cycle based on Synchronization Interval that you set to automatically run incremental migration and generate a new ECS custom image.

1. Stop the services and run an incremental migration job.

   Stop the services on the source server during off-peak hours, and run the incremental migration again. Perform the following operations:

   1. Log on to the source server and stop the system services.

   2. Perform incremental migration.

      • Automatically perform incremental migration

        SMC will automatically run incremental migration based on Synchronization Interval that you set.

      • Manually perform incremental migration

        In the Actions column of the deworkgroup, click startSync, and perform incremental migration in batches as prompted.

        

        Note

        You can also click the workgroup ID to perform manual incremental synchronization for each server.

2. Complete incremental synchronization.

   After the last incremental migration operation is complete, perform the following steps to complete incremental migration:

   1. In the Actions column of the destination workgroup, select > Complete Incremental Synchronization.

      

   2. In the Run Incremental Job dialog box, click Next.

      You can also select Perform One Last Synchronizatio in the Complete Incremental Synchronization dialog box to complete the last data synchronization.

   3. Click Next to confirm the migration sources.

   4. Click OK to start incremental synchronization.

   5. On the Workgroup Migration page, view the migration status.

      The amount of time required for data transmission is subject to factors such as the data size of the migration source and network bandwidth. Wait until the migration job is complete. When the migration status is Completed, the migration is successful.

      

   Note

   After you complete incremental migration, no more incremental migration operations are automatically performed and you cannot manually run the migration job. If you click Complete Incremental Synchronization and confirm the completion by accident but still need to migrate incremental data, re-create a migration job.

After you migrate the server, perform the following operations to ensure that your business runs normally:

• Verify the data to ensure its integrity and correctness. For more information, see How do I check my system after I migrate a Linux server? or How do I check my system after I migrate a Windows server?.

• If applications and services on the source server are not configured to start automatically, you must manually start them after the migration.

• The IP address changes after migration. If your business involves IP address configurations, you must modify the domain name resolution, ICP filing, and other settings after the migration.

  • If a domain name is already mapped to the source server, map the domain name to the new public IP address of the server. For more information, see Add a website resolution.

  • To keep the private IP address unchanged, you can modify the private IP address after the migration is complete.

    • ECS Image: When you create an ECS instance, you can specify a private IP address. For more information, see Specify the primary private IPv4 address of the primary network interface card when purchasing an ECS instance.

    • When migrating to a ECS Instance, if you do not modify the private IPv4 address in the advanced configuration during the migration settings step, you can do so after the migration is complete. For more information, see Modify the primary private IPv4 address of the primary network interface card of an existing instance.